Coming to America: Iranians' use of Telegram for immigration information seeking
Aslib Journal of Information Management
ISSN: 2050-3806
Article publication date: 24 July 2020
Issue publication date: 12 November 2020
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines Iran-US migrants' use of the most popular messaging application in Iran—Telegram—and shows how they use it to manage their migration information practices.
Design/methodology/approach
This study took a qualitative observation approach. Over the course of six months, over 80 h of observations were conducted on Iran-US migration-related settings within Telegram.
Findings
This work identifies the information practices that emerge as users seek and share information related to Iran-US migration. Telegram plays a vital role across the immigration stages, predominantly in the pre-migration stage. This work also shows how the constraints and features of Telegram influence users' information sharing and seeking practices.
Practical implications
The findings support the implication that a social media platform that provides multiple ways to interact is likely to better support niche or unanticipated uses.
Originality/value
This study is the first of its kind to explore Iranian Immigrants information practices in the US. The immigration information practices observed during this study represent a valuable example of end-user appropriation within extraordinary constraints, which may be of use in other information-seeking contexts where dedicated or bespoke tools are impractical or ill-advised.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Funding: This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
Citation
Nikkhah, S., Murillo, A.P., Young, A.L. and Miller, A.D. (2020), "Coming to America: Iranians' use of Telegram for immigration information seeking", Aslib Journal of Information Management, Vol. 72 No. 4, pp. 561-585. https://doi.org/10.1108/AJIM-11-2019-0321
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited